N. Carolina, Arizona Among State AG Offices Involved in Multistate Tech Competition Probe
North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein (D) and Arizona AG Mark Brnovich (R) are participating in bipartisan discussions about a multistate investigation of tech industry competition, aides from both offices said. The group, which also involves Texas and Nebraska, is expected to issue civil investigative demands (CID) around Labor Day, said a source familiar with the effort. CIDs are prelitigation, administrative subpoenas officials can use to compel documents and testimony from the industry.
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The multistate probe is the culmination of recent discussions among state AGs, notably a meeting in July with Attorney General William Barr (see 1907260062), a source said. AGs and aides from North Carolina, Arizona, Texas, Nebraska, New York, Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida and Iowa were among those who met with Barr, according to aides. The multistate investigation and DOJ’s tech probe (see 1907250049) are two separate efforts, the source said. AGs in Texas and Nebraska signaled interest in leading the multistate probe, the source said, citing Texas’ broad CID authority. Offices for Texas and Nebraska didn’t comment.
“A bipartisan group of attorneys general have expressed a wide array of concerns involving big tech companies and are working towards a collective effort,” said an aide for Brnovich, citing Arizona’s concerns about data privacy rights.
State AGs formed a tech industry working group over the past “several months,” said Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood (D) in a statement, noting it’s a subgroup of the National Association of Attorneys General's multistate task force. Hood is concerned about the aggregation of data in the hands of a few: “We need to evaluate and address specific conduct, utilizing our existing antitrust and consumer protection laws. One way we are doing this is a multistate working group … looking at the intersection of technology and antitrust.”
Perhaps a few dozen state AGs "have expressed interest in” DOJ’s review of the tech industry, DOJ Antitrust Division Chief Makan Delrahim said Tuesday in Aspen (see 1908200027). A platform's size isn’t necessarily a problem, but bad behavior is, he said. Delrahim recently briefed Senate Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman Mike Lee, R-Utah, and ranking member Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., on the agency’s tech probe (see 1907250049 and 1908020034).
New York AG Leticia James (D) is engaged in bipartisan conversations about the “unchecked power of large tech companies,” an aide said. “We must ensure we protect competition, protect our economy, and protect consumers.” Officials have concerns about big tech’s control over personal data, and the industry will be held accountable for “anticompetitive practices that endanger privacy and consumer data,” the aide said.
An aide to California AG Xavier Becerra (D) declined to comment on the existence of an investigation, but said, “Generally, we are concerned about any anti-competitive action that unfairly dismisses consumers’ interests or creates an uneven playing field.”
The FTC is also investigating tech industry competition through a newly launched task force (see 1902280077). Shortly after reaching a $5 billion privacy settlement with Facebook, the agency confirmed it's investigating the social network on antitrust grounds (see 1907290025).
South Carolina AG Alan Wilson (R) hasn’t been invited to participate in the multistate effort, an aide said: “We have no position on whether it has any merit because we have not been provided any details by the states involved.” Offices for AGs in Idaho, Washington, Utah, New Jersey and Washington, D.C. declined comment, and dozens of others didn’t respond to requests for comment.